It is strange that so much misunderstanding has been born around such a simple thing as meditation. Firstly, meditation is a way of calming down and self-discovery, so any critical analysis does not work here. Secondly, sitting in the lotus position and reciting mantras is not meditation, although it is also useful. Anyway, forget everything you've seen in movies or what your friends have told you. Meditation is simple.
Meditation is existence and nothing else. Nothing mysterious, no demands and secrets. This is existence in the simplest and most understandable form. What does it mean?
If you meditate properly, you simply dissolve and turn into emptiness. All your daily problems and worries fade into the background. You become an empty vessel and nothing more.
In order to start meditation, find a quiet and peaceful place where you will not be disturbed by family, children and a faithful dog. Then just sit down and relax. Any position in which you feel comfortable will be correct. After you have relaxed, try to calm your mind and bring order to your thoughts. Close your eyes and breathe deeply.
This technique of cleansing consciousness is very simple, although it may seem unusual. The main advice is: just try to get everything out of your head. Of course, this is impossible. Therefore, become an observer and observe the flow of your thoughts. It's like your feelings when an airplane takes off: you are here, and your thoughts are somewhere below and you look at them from the side. Let them be somewhere below, they will definitely meet you at the airport.
The key feature of this action is detachment. Just watch your thoughts from the side. When I started doing this, I noticed that they stopped influencing me in any way. Irritability and serious problems disappeared for a while for me. Whatever you say, there are advantages to detachment.
Having thus relaxed your consciousness, continue to observe the flow. If you pay attention, you will notice that gradually thoughts simply dissolve. When we were kids, we didn't care about anything. We didn't have the seriousness and responsibility that we have now. We just lived and didn't think about anything.
The state of such a detached existence has great advantages. When you open your eyes after meditation, everything will seem different, unusual. This is a childish feeling of magic that fills the world. You will also notice that the thoughts that you have thrown out of your head will not immediately come back. These two phenomena are connected, pay attention to them.
Things around you will seem more holistic. It's like you're seeing them for the first time. This is because meditation puts you in a state where your mind is adrift. You will not be able to immediately return to the usual judgments and to the terrible habit of instantly evaluating everything around you. You will just see, say, a chair. Instead of conjuring up an image of a chair in your head. And then the ordinary thing will be filled with an incomprehensible depth.
Meditation takes you to a new level of consciousness. Yes, yes, this is a common exercise in detachment from reality. If you train, you will be able to evoke a sense of unusual surroundings whenever you want. It helps to look at things from an unusual angle and solve complex problems. Many people call it enlightenment, although it is not.
When you are just starting a meditative practice, concentrate on clearing your consciousness. This is a very difficult task! At first, your mind will be very chaotic, do not get upset and continue your studies. If you feel annoyed and angry, but you can't do anything about it — sit down to study in this state. But it is better to calm down and accept reality as it is, whatever it may be.
You will feel progress when, after meditation, your worries and everyday thoughts will return with some delay. This is where the fun begins. Over time, you will be able to push the moment of immersion into everyday life further and further. Your thoughts at the moment of meditation will be incredibly pure.
The results of meditation and the state itself are worth the effort. Being a calm, adequate person with a new outlook on things, you will achieve much more than others.
